Brace for windsor chairs and the like



April 1, 1930. I T. H. WITTLIFIF 1,752,545

BRACE FOR WINDSOR CHAIRS AND .THE LIKE Filed April 23, 1925 manna/1mm mmmmnfinmm.

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ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 1, 1930 UNITED STATES THEODORE H. VVI'ITLIFF, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO BRACE FOR WINDSOR CHAIRS AND THE LIKE Application filed April 23, 1925.

This invention, as indicated, relates to a brace for Windsor chairs and the like. More particularly it comprises a tensioning device adapted to be placed in concealed position beneath the solid bottom of a Windsor chair or similar article of furniture and to apply inward and upward pressure to the legs or posts of said article of furniture whereby the rigidity of the same will be assured. By means of a turn buckle or similar device for applying tension to flexible members connected with the respective legs or corner posts of the article of furniture the tensioning of the structure may be adjusted from time to time, as may be required when shrinkage of the wooden parts or stretching of the metal tensioning members through severe usage makes such further adjustment necessary.

The brace while intended particularly for Windsor chairs, it is obvious may be used for similar purposes in connection with other articles than those here particularly indicated.

It is customary in many places to provide wooden bottom chairs of the WVindsor D chair type for public halls and meeting places, and such chairs are subjected to extremely severe usage. It has heretofore been proposed to string wires between thelegs of such chairs, but such expedients provide for no taking up of tension and apply the tension directly between the legs and not upwardly and inwardly so as to draw such legs into the recesses within which the upper ends of said legs are seated.

The principal object of my invention is to obviate the difficulty referredto and to provide a brace which will draw the upper ends of the legs in a direction toward the chair bottom and at the same time inwardly against the ends of the cross braces between the respective legs so as to make a wholly rigid structure and distribute the stresses applied to one leg through the bracing system to the other legs of the chair. Other objects of the invention will appear in the course of the following description. To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, said invention, then, consists of the means hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

Serial No. 25,341.

The annexed drawing and the following description set forth in detail certain mechaism embodying the invention, such disclosed means constituting, however, but one of Various mechanical forms in which the principle of the invention may be used.

In said annexed drawing Fig. 1 is a bottom plan view of the device applied beneath the seat of a Windsor chair; Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 2-2 shown in Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view taken along the line 3-3 shown in Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 4 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view taken centrally through the turn buckle shown in Fig. 1 Fig. 5 is a bottom plan view of a modifiedform of tensioning device applied to the bottom of a Windsor chair, with a bracing system similar to that shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical sectional View taken centrally of the turn buckle shown in Fig. 5.

As is clearly shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, the preferred form of brace for a solid 75 bottom chair, known as a lVindsor type chair, comprises a pair of flexible elements secured to the respective pairs of chair legs, said flexible members being interlooped and adapted to be tensioned by means of a turn buckle device interposed between said flexible members.

The chair bottom 1 is usually of substantially rectangular shape and is provided adjacent each corner with a leg 2 having its upper end 3 engaged within a recess 4 formed in the chair bottom. Adjacent the under side of the chair seat each leg is provided with a terminal element 5, preferably a hook-shaped bolt having an inconspciuous head portion 6 upon its outer side and a downwardly turned hook 7 upon its inner end. A flexible member 8, preferably formed of wire or stranded cable, is provided with a loop at each end and is engaged over the hooks upon a pair of adjacent legs at one side or end of said article of furniture. A similar flexible element 9 is engaged upon the hooks of the pair of legs oppositethose first referred to, and said flexible member is interlooped with the firstnamed flexible member. Suflicient length is provided for each of said flexible members to receive between the central portions thereof a turn buckle 11 having a body portion 12 formed with screw-threaded apertures 13 at either end to receive the screw-threaded shanks 14 of substantially T-shaped members 15 which engage the respective flexible elements. The shanks are screw-threaded in opposite directions so that the rotation of the body portion of the turnbuckle will separate or bring together the heads of said T-shaped members. The outer faces 'ofsaid T-shaped members are preferably provided with grooves 16 of a size adapted to receive the flexiblemembers, and the ends -.of the T- shaped heads. are bent at. a slight angle so as to providei'rictional contact thereovcr with an extended portion of said flexible members. .Adjacentthe respective corners of the chair bottom a clip 17 is provided, said clip having a grooved central portion 18 of a depth ade- ,quate to; receive one of the flexible elements and-serve as a guide member or guide clip therefor when said clip is firmly attached to the bottom of the chair by means of a pair of screws or similar fastening elements 19. The position of the clips should be such that the proper angular relation of the flexible member with the chair leg will be provided so that tension upon the flexible elements will .cause the legs to be pulled into their sockets .or-recesses at their upper ends and inwardly against the rounds or spacing bars (not shown) interposed between the legs adjacent their central or lower portions.

'The construction shown in F 5 is sub stantially similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1, excepting for the modified form of tensioniing device. This modified form of tensioning device isalso illustrated in F (3 and comprises a central bar 21 having oppositely screw-threaded ends 22, 23, upon which are respectively engaged a pair of plates 24, havapertured cars 26, 27', at opposite ends which are adapted to engage the respective screw threads. The car 27 at one end of each suchplate is turned directly at ri ht angles to the. body of said plate, while the opposite car 26 is bent upwardly and then'outwardly andtlieii ipivai'tlly again so as to provide a depressed corner portion28 within which the middle port-ionotone .of the flexible members is adapted to be received, the adjacent )ortions 29 of said'fflexible member extend- .ing-across' the adjacent corners of the body of said plate. The central bar 21 is provided with an enlarged cylindricalmember 31 at a central point, adapted to be'engaged by the fingers of the operatorwhenthe bar is tolbe rotated tomove said plates toward or 'away-froni-each other according to the' degree er tension which it is desired: to place upon theiflexibleelements.

Thejprovision or a pairof, apertured ears the mechanism herein disclosed, provided the meansstated by any of the following claims or the equivalent of such stated means be em- ,ployed.

.I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention 1. An apparatus of the character described, having in combination a base, a plurality of supports secured to said base, a terminal element secured to each support, a tensioning device positioned beneath said base, support ing members adjacent said supports, connections between said tensioning means and said terminal elements cooperating with said respective supporting members to apply tension to said respective supports in a direction up wardly and toward the center of said base member.

2. An apparatus of the character described, having in combination a base, a plurality of supports secured to-said base, a terminal element secured to each support, a plurality of guide members secured to said base, a tensioning device positioned beneath said base, and flexible members connecting said tensioning means and said terminal elements and extending through said respective guide members to apply tension to said respective supports in a direction upwardly and toward the center of said base member.

3. An apparatus or" the character described, having in combination a base, a pluralityof supports secured to said base, a terminal element secured to each support, a plurality of guide members secured to said base, a pair of flexible members connecting respectively pairs of terminal elements and extending through said respective guide members, and a tensioning device associated with the intermediate portions of said flexible elements to apply tension to said respective supports in a direction upwardly and toward the center of said base member.

4. An apparatus of the character described adapted to form part of the structure of a Vindsor chair comprising a seat of approximately rectangular shape having recesses on its under side ad acent its respective corners adapted to receive the upper ends of downwardly and outwardly inclined chair legs, fastening elements secured through said legs i130 adjacent their point of attachment to said seat, cable receiving guide clips secured to the under side of said seat adjacent said respective legs, a pair of cables secured to said fastening elements upon adjacent pairs of legs and extending beneath said clips and interlooped with each other, and a tensioning device interposed between. the central portions of said cables and adapted to be adjusted to apply tension thereto.

5. An apparatus of the character described adapted to form part of the structure of a Windsor chair comprising a seat of approximately rectangular shape having recesses on its under side adjacent its respective corners adapted to receive the upper ends of clownwardly and outwardly inclined chair legs, fastening elements secured through said legs adjacent their point of attachment to said seat, cable receiving guide clips secured to the under side of said seat adjacent said respective legs, a pair of cables secured to said fastening elements upon adjacent pairs of legs and extending beneath said clips and interlooped with each other, and a tensioning device disposed parallel with said base and engaging with the intermediate portions of said cables and adapted to space the same from each other when said tensioning device is adjusted.

6. An apparatus of the character described adapted to form part of the structure of a Windsor chair comprising a seat of approximately rectangular shape having recesses on its under side adjacent its respective corners adapted to receive the upper ends of downwardly and outwardly inclined chair legs, fastening elements secured through said legs adjacent their point of attachment to said seat, cable receiving guide clips secured to the under side of said seat adjacent said respective legs, a pair of cables secured to said fastening elements upon adjacent pairs of legs and extending beneath said clips and interlooped with each other, a tensioning device adapted to be disposed intermediate the central portions of said flexible elements in a position parallel with said base, said device including a central adjusting member having a screw-threaded section adjacent each end,

and a pair of cable engaging members having a pair of spaced screw-threaded apertures adapted to co-operate with the respective screw-threaded ends of said central member;

7. A tensioning device for furniture braces comprising a central member screw-threaded in opposite directions at its respective ends, and a pair of cable engaging plates each having extensions at right angles at opposite ends, and each of said extensions bein provided with screw threaded apertures adapted to engage the screw threads on the respective ends of said central member.

Signed by me, this 14th day of April, 1925.

THEODORE H. WITTLIFF. 

